When we tell girls they’re bad with money, they grow up believing it.
It’s time to remove gender bias from our dictionaries.

When we tell girls they’re good with money, they grow up believing it.
Join the movement, share Jane’s story.
Our commitment
Throughout history, women have shown themselves to be progress-makers – challengers of the status quo, innovators and leaders for the next generation. Despite this progress, 57% of women say they wish they were more confident in their financial decision making.1
At BMO, we’re committed to real financial progress for every woman so they’re prepared to seize every opportunity.
Now, for International Day of the Girl, we’re reaffirming our commitment to the work ahead because girls deserve better.
It’s time to close the gap
Progress is being made — slowly. If advancement toward equality continues at its current pace, the economic gender gap in North America will take 151 years to close.6 Surprising? How we compare to other parts of the world might surprise you even more.

At S&P 500 companies, women make up just 21% of board members and 27% of executives.7 When women and girls are empowered financially, lives improve, innovation surges and the economy grows stronger.
When there’s equal financial opportunity, everyone wins
Worldwide, men own 50% more wealth than women.8
If women earned the same as men over their lifetime, global wealth for the average person could be
Finding new ways to advance real financial progress
Bold & Black: The State of Black Entrepreneurship in Canada and the US
A lot has changed since the world witnessed the death of a Black man on the streets of...
Where Belonging intersects with Bold
This next evolution of Bold(h)er aims to bring you professional insights and real advice to fuel...
Women Business Owners: Advancing Sustainability
BMO Financial Group’s General Counsel, Sharon Haward-Laird hosted Women Business Owners:...
Startup investing is imbalanced
Venture capital dollars have poured into startups in recent years. But the median investment for women founders is often half — or even less — of the median that male founders receive.
Median deal sizes in the US:
Female founders vs. male founders10
US$2 Million
for male founders
US$1 Million
for female founders
US$2.4 Million
for male founders
US$1 Million
for female founders
US$2.6 Million
for male founders
US$1.3 Million
for female founders
US$3.2 Million
for male founders
US$1.5 Million
for female founders
US$3.5 Million
for male founders
US$1.9 Million
for female founders
Business lending is lopsided
Business loans can make or break companies as they get their footing in the market, try to grow or weather tough economic conditions. Women have had limited access to capital, and this has forced them to do more with less.
Average loan amounts across financial industry in 2018:11
for women-owned companies
for men-owned companies

Boldly grow the good
Progress demands more than wishful thinking. It requires all of us to see the problem clearly and collaborate to solve it. That’s why we’re starting new conversations with our employees, clients and our communities about how we can take steps toward ensuring women feel confident in their financial future.
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Sources
- Germanno, Maggie. How Women Can Improve Their Financial Optimism Despite Growing Anxieties. Forbes, 2019.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/maggiegermano/2019/07/29/how-women-can-improve-their-financial-optimism-despite-growing-anxieties/#3cbbfa6f1cf8 - Drolet, Marie. Gender differences in the financial knowledge of Canadians. Statistics Canada, 2016.
https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/75-006-x/2016001/article/14464-eng.htm. - Adolescent Income and Financial Literacy. Giftcards.com, 2018.
https://www.giftcards.com/adolescent-income-and-financial-literacy. - Boden, Anne. Why we need to #MAKEMONEYEQUAL. Starling Bank, 2018.
https://www.starlingbank.com/blog/make-money-equal/. - Oakley, Diane; Brown, Jennifer Erin; Saad-Lessler, Joelle; Rhee, Nari. Shortchanged in Retirement: Continuing Challenges to Women’s Financial Future. National Institute on Retirement Security, 2016.
https://www.nirsonline.org/reports/shortchanged-in-retirement-continuing-challenges-to-womens-financial-future/. - The Global Gender Gap Report 2020. World Economic Forum, 2020.
https://www.weforum.org/reports/gender-gap-2020-report-100-years-pay-equality.
- Catalyst, Pyramid: Women in S&P 500 Companies (January 15, 2020).
https://www.catalyst.org/research/women-in-sp-500-companies/. - “5 shocking facts about extreme global inequality and how to even it up.” Oxfam International.
https://www.oxfam.org/en/5-shocking-facts-about-extreme-global-inequality-and-how-even-it. - Wodon, Quentin T.; de la Brière, Bénédicte. 2018. Unrealized Potential: The High Cost of Gender Inequality in Earnings. The Cost of Gender Inequality. Washington, DC: World Bank. © World Bank.
https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/29865 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO. - Global Fintech Index, 2020. http://www.fintechmundi.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Findexable_Global-Fintech-Rankings-2020.pdf
- Q4 2019 PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor. PitchBook, 2019.
- As Revenue of Women-Owned Businesses Rose, Credit Scores Dropped in 2018. Biz2Credit, 2019.
https://www.biz2credit.com/research-reports/as-revenue-of-women-owner-businesses-rose-credit-scores-dropped-in-2018. - “BMO’s $3-billion fund for women-owned businesses taps into segment growing faster than any other.” Financial Post, 2019.
https://business.financialpost.com/entrepreneur/fp-startups/bmos-3-billion-fund-for-women-owned-businesses-taps-into-segment-growing-faster-than-any-other.
